Archeologists have discovered the remains of a “band of brothers” who, they believe, helped to transport giant bluestones from the Preseli mountains in West Wales to build Stonehenge more than 4,000 years ago.
They have been dubbed the Boscombe Bowmen after the location of their grave a few miles from Britain’s most famous prehistoric monument.
The first direct evidence that people from Wales accompanied the stones on their epic journey to Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire was found by workmen laying a water pipe. They uncovered a single grave containing the bones of three adults, a teenager and three young children not far from that of the fabulously wealthy “Amesbury Archer” discovered two years ago.
Chemical analysis of minerals in their teeth established that the brothers came from the Preselis, 150 miles from their last resting place, and almost certainly accompanied the bluestones on their epic journey 4,300 years ago.
It is the first time that archaeologists have been able to establish an apparent direct link between the remains of any individual and the people who created the mysterious monument. They have been named the Boscombe Bowmen because the grave contained flint arrowheads and was found on Boscombe Down.
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Shards of beaker pots also discovered in the grave are similar to those buried with the Amesbury Archer, whom archaeologists have established came from Central Europe and lived at almost the same time at the start of the “metal age”.
The bones were in varying states of preservation but the shape of the skulls shows that they were related. An adult male, who died between the ages of 30 and 45, had at some point suffered a badly broken leg, leading to speculation that he might have been injured while moving the heavy stones. The three children were buried near his head and may have been his children. One of them, who died between the ages of 2 and 4, had been cremated. The other two were aged between 5 and 7.
The remains of the teenager and the two other men had been rearranged and may have been placed in the grave later. The teenager was between 15 and 18 and the others were 25 to 30.
The bluestones are the smaller of the two main types of stone erected at Stonehenge but they still weigh about four tonnes each and moving them would have been a major operation, probably involving hundreds of people. Until their arrival the monument was constructed entirely of timber.
Although archaeologists have known for decades that the 80 bluestones were quarried in the Preseli hills, arguments still rage about how they were transported to Salisbury Plain.
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The bluestones were the first to be erected at Stonehenge and were rearranged when the massive sarsen stones were brought from near Marlborough a few hundred years later.
They were aligned to mark sunrise on the longest day of the year and sunset on the shortest day.
Colin Kirby, the archaeologist who made the discovery, said: “On the second day of the excavations, I noticed a human bone in the side of a water pipe trench.
“On investigating the spoil from the trench, fragments of beaker pottery and an arrowhead emerged. This was very exciting as it showed that the burial was probably Bronze Age and may be linked to the Amesbury Archer.”
Andrew Fitzpatrick, of Wessex Archaeology, which conducted the excavation, said: “For the first time we have found the mortal remains of one of the families who were almost certainly involved in this monumental task. The Boscombe Bowmen, a band of brothers, must almost certainly be linked with the bringing of the bluestones to Stonehenge.
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“In the graves were eight decorated pots, five arrow heads and a bone toggle, only the second to have been found in Britain. It means that for the first time we are beginning to see the families who helped to build the monument.”
Dr Fitzpatrick said: “There are bound to be more of these people buried near by. It is likely that many people took part because it was a very public display and those in charge would want to involve as many as possible.”
More than 30,000 people were expected at Stonehenge to celebrate the summer solstice as dawn broke over the Heel Stone at 4.58am today, the longest day of the year.